Poplars
On my way out, after many miles of flat high desert and open plains, I suddenly came upon trees. Lots of trees, planted about five feet apart and literally stretching for miles. I was so intrigued, that on my way back I decided to stop and find out what this was all about. In the photo below left, the dark mass along the horizon is but a small portion of the many trees.
I found an exit that took me to the access road which paralleled the highway. From here I could read the sign for the Potlatch hybrid poplar tree farm. An impressive 17,000 acres of poplar trees stretches three or four miles along I-84 and six miles or more to the south. According to their website, Potlatch started the tree plantation in 1992, and began harvesting the trees in 2003. The primary market seems to be paper products, but some may be sawn into lumber for furniture and other non-structural applications. It is difficult to grasp the sheer magnitude of this endeavor from the photographs, but try to imagine several square miles of closely-spaced trees.
Homeward Bound
I returned to the highway and pressed on. It was early evening now, and getting up before the sun (which is completely asinine, you know) was really starting to drag me down. I stopped again near The Dalles for some sugar and caffeine, as I was a little concerned about falling asleep at the wheel. I decided to try one of those Red Bull energy drinks that seem popular these days. For as much as it costs, it should keep you awake for a week. After three sips, I threw the rest away; that stuff tastes horrid. At least the candy bar was good. I decided to stay awake by playing hard rock and techno CD’s really loud, and cranking up the air conditioning all the way. That seemed to do the trick, and I arrived home around 7:30 pm.
Joseph